St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 67

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23, 1994 ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH SPORTS 7F' COLLEGE FOOTBALL: MIZZOU MIZZOU NOTEBOOK Nebraska Spices Usual Attack With 152 Yards By Air 4 1 ft 1 v. I Jenkins Offensive Delight By Vahe Gregorian Of the Post-Dispatch Staff COLUMBIA, Mo. Receiver Rahsetnu Jenkins, a sophomore from Mehlville High, accounted for nearly half of the University of Missouri's total offense Saturday and scored the Tigers' only touchdown. "Every dog has a day, and I guess I was a dog today," Jenkins said.

Jenkins had seven receptions in the first half and finished with eight for 90 yards. He scored on a 34-yard pass from Jeff Handy in the fourth quarter, with MU losing 28-0. "I'm a receiver, and that's my job to catch the ball," he said. Still, Jenkins was braced for coach Larry Smith's ire after the game. "I looked at him, and I knew were about to get he said.

"That tells people something." So does Jenkins' play the last two weeks. He had three catches for 48 yards last -Saturday a day after attending the funeral of his best friend, who had been shot earlier in the week. Tiger Talk: During Smith's animated postgame lecture to the team, other voices were briefly heard followed by Smith yelling: "I'm not going to stand for that nonsense. Every one shut up." No player cared to identify the yapping teammates, who apparently were jawing at each other. But defensive lineman Steve Martin said: are the actors, the guys who try to make it look like they care.

Maybe they actually do. But there's no point in fighting among each other, because we lost the true fight, which was there." almost certainly have to throw the ball against the Buffaloes. "Brook can do it all and probably next week will have to do it Osborne said. "We can't sit on anything right now." Critics of Nebraska claim the Cornhuskers have trouble winning big games because they can't throw, the ball. That hypothesis will be tested by Colorado.

Colorado isn't spectacular against the pass, entering the weekend ranked 59th in the country in pass efficiency defense. Even so Nebraska may have trouble throwing the ball; the Huskers were 102nd in the country (among 107 teams) in passing "I feel like it will be pretty important to throw," tailback Damon Benning said. "The passing game will help open up the run. They just complement each other." Berringer will bear the brunt of the pressure next week. At times against Missouri he looked uncomfortable in the pocket.

To help him, Osborne called plenty of rollouts and quick passes to keep defensive pressure away from Berringer. But since Nebraska faced few criti--cal long-yardage situations against" Missouri, is Berringer comfortable with knowing he has to pass in such situations? "Yeah," Berringer said, glaring at a reporter who dared question him. Does Berringer mind standing in' the pocket, knowing he's going take a hit? "No," he said with equal conviction. Then Berringer looked away from the offending reporter, ready for a different line of questioning. I V7 J.

OA MU's Andre White stops Nebraska's Lawrence Phillips after an By Tyler Green Post-Dispatch Special Correspondent COLUMBIA, Mo. Nebraska can run the football. The Cornhuskers always have, and probably always will. But passing the ball always has been an adventure for the 'Huskers. Nebraska children are raised to fear bad harvests, nuclear war and passing situations.

So it was a mild surprise when the Cornhuskers passed for 152 yards, 50 more than its season average, and three touchdowns in a 42-7 victory Saturday over Missouri. But it was the rushing attack that helped Nebraska weather a slow start. Nebraska struggled early and failed to get a first down until the opening moments of the second quarter. "I wasn't sure we were ever going to get on track," coach Tom Osborne said. "I thought once we got something going we'd begin to get some other things working, but I couldn't find anything that would work." Eventually Osborne found running back Lawrence Phillips, who gained 110 yards on 22 carries.

Throw in eight other ballcarriers and Nebraska, the nation's top rushing team, rolled up 330 yards on the ground. The last 60 times Nebraska has rushed for 300 yards or more, it has won. "If we're running the ball real effectively, then throwing the ball's not important at all," tackle Zach Wie-gert said. But a high-powered running game may not be enough for Nebraska to defeat second-ranked Colorado next weekend. Quarterback Brook Berringer will Miklasz From page one to so many of the Mizzou veterans who have been trained in losing.

These seniors aren't losers, per se, but losing has drained their confidence. They're more likely to surrender. Sophomore wideout Rahsetnu Jenkins was blunt. "I think the younger guys are playing with a lot of heart," he said. "I can't really talk about the seniors.

I don't know what goes on in their mind when they see the score." Olivo said, "I personally try to go into every game with the attitude that I believe we can win, that I expect to win. Our class comes from winning high school programs, I think we go in there not knowing how to lose. That has to spread." Indeed. We've seen a lot of promise from Mizzou youth. Those typically horrible Missouri losses aren't a tradition to them yet.

That's how the Tigers came to dominate Saturday's first quarter. That's why the Tigers were still in the hunt at halftime. "We provide a different morale," redshirt freshman fullback Rhino Janes "We haven't been through the same stuff. We don't know what it's like to lose. I feel like the younger guys refuse to lose.

We play every play the best we can. We 1 3 i A'tir Wistrom said. Olivo Branch: Asked if he noticed that the Faurot Field noise level increases when he touches the ball, Mizzou freshman tailback Brock Olivo (Borgia) smiled: "That could just be my family. They're pretty loud." Noteworthy: MU quarterback Jeff Handy and tailback Joe Freeman, requested for interviews by multiple media outlets, never entered the in NEBRASKA 0 14 14 14 42 MISSOURI 0 0 7 7 SECOND QUARTER Phillips 5 run (Sieler kick), 1 1:15 Benning 9 run (Sieler kick). 8:00 THIRD QUARTER Gilman 1 pass from Berringer (Erstad kick), 4:56 Holbein 30 pass from Berringer (Erstad kick), 1:36 FOURTH QUARTER Jenkins 34 pass from Handy (Pooler kick), 7:36 Baul 43 pass from Berringer (Erstad kick), 6:00 Benning 2 run (Erstad kick), 1:23 A 50.537.

TEAM STATISTICS Cornhuskers Tigers First downs 23 13 Third-down efficiency 8-14-57 5-14-36 Total net yards 482 198 Total offensive plays 71 61 Rushes-yards 58-330 29-48 Passing yards 152 150 Total return yards 97 53 Passes 9-13-0 19-32-1 Sacks-yards lost 3-23 0-0 Punts Fumbles-lost 2-1 3-1 Penalties-yards 9-75 5-50 Time of possession 31:31 28:29 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING Cornhuskers Att. Yds. Avg. Lg TD Phillips 22 110 5.0 21 1 Turman 1 21 21.0 21 0 Barrmger 5 23 4.6 13 0 Benning 10 39 3 9 12 2 Makovicka 5 18 3.6 12 0 Childs 6 65 10.8 17 0 Muhammad 1 5 5.0 5 0 Schuster 3 14 4.7 6 0 Schlesinger 5 35 7.0 22 0 Tigers Att. Yds.

Avg. Lg TD on a 34-yard pass from Handy to Rahsetnu Jenkins with 7:36 to play. But Nebraska made it 35-7 just 1:36 later, when Berringer play-faked and connected with an orphaned Baul for a 43-yard score. That, and a final 2-yard run by Benning obscured anything MU might have accomplished earlier in the game particularly in Smith's Great Quality Best Values Attractive Prices Fast Service Warrantied At Over 400 Centers Coast-io-Coast Vans, COOL (2 SOUTH Jerry Naunheim Jr.Post-Dispatch 11 -yard gain in the third quarter. terview room.

Nebraska reserve quarterback Matt Turman suffered a shoulder injury after being tackled by MU's Jerome Madison and may be out for two weeks or longer. Handy passed for 150 yards, making him the first MU quarterback to pass for more than 6,000 yards. He has 6,109. MU has lost its last five home games. Travis McDonald led MU with 16 tackles, moving him to second on MU's career list with 327.

Freeman 11 26 2.4 12 0 Handy 4 -25 0 0 Olivo 11 37 5.4 16 0 Jones 2 10 5.0 9 0 Washington 1 0 0.0 0 0 PASSING Cornhuskers Att. Comp Yds. Int. TD Berringer 13 9 152 0 3 Tigers Att. Comp Yds.

Int. TD Handy 29 19 150 1 1 Corso 3 0 0 0 0 RECEIVING Cornhuskers No. Yds. Lg TD Holbein 1 30 30 1 Baul 1 43 43 1 Alford 1 29 29 0 Benning 2 20 14 0 Muhammad 2 23 20 0 Gilman 2 7 .6 1 Tigers No. Yds.

Lg TD Jenkins 8 90 34 1 Sallee 5 38 11 0 Olivo 3 1 1 0 Janes 1 1 1 0 Jones 2 15 10 0 Frazier 3 5 4 0 PUNTING Cornhuskers No. Avg. Lg Erstad 4 42.3 52 Tigers No. Avg. Lg Pooler 9 39.8 55 PUNT RETURNS Cornhuskers No.

Yds. Lg TD Baul 2 24 14 0 Childs 1 3 3 0 Mose 3 17 12 0 Tigers No. Yds. Lg TD Baker 2 1 4 0 KICKOFF RETURNS Cornhuskers No. Yds.

Lg TD Benning 1 16 16 0 Makovicks 1 10 10 0 Tigers No. Yds. Lg TD Jenkins 3 52 21 0 mind. "You can make losing so damned miserable that maybe some people fight themselves out of it a little harder," said Smith, who planned to find out how accepting his team was of the loss. "If they were, they'd better not come back," he said.

COMPLETE PAINT SERVICES STARTING AT $159.95 want to go after the big teams like Nebraska and Colorado." Jenkins, from Mehlville, pestered Nebraska with eight catches for 90 yards (including a 34-yard TD). Olivo is averaging 4.3 yards per carry and has Mizzou's longest run from scrimmage. Freeman averages 3.5 yards per run. Janes accelerates fairly well for a big load and knocks people down. So why do we still see so much of immobile senior fullback Michael Washing-' ton? And why hasn't the MU coaching staff tapped into the versatile skills of sophomore fullback Greg Smith? Those are just a few examples.

Mizzou has other, younger options to go to at several positions. And Smith might be turning to them. "I'm not down on the older guys," he said. "Some older guys play inspirational roles for the team. But some younger guys really have the enthusiasm and intensity.

We have to get them in-the lineup more consistently." Well, the pups are chewing on the cage. They are yipping and panting. They want to get out. They want to have fun. Mizzou needs their joy.

"There's so much I'm learning as a young player, week by week," Janes said. "I can't wait until the next game, at Iowa State. I can't wait. I'm really looking forward to it." Please, Larry: set the young dogs free. The Army can start you on the road to success with high-tech training that's hard to beat.

We offer hard-to-duplicate, hands-on training in Ik numerous high-tech skills. If you qualify, the Armv offers vou oDOortunities to train 111 U1U lUllUTTllig UVlUUt Grant's Farm: Nebraska linebacker Grant Wistrom, a freshman from Webb City in southwestern Missouri, said he believed between 150 and 200 friends and family members were on hand to see him Saturday. Wistrom, whom coach Tom Osborne has said is playing better than any freshman he's ever had, had to slog through fans to get to the Nebraska locker room. "This is a great homecoming," At the end of the first quarter, the Tigers had six first downs. Nebraska had none and just 16 yards offense.

"They were primed for the upset," O'Neil said. "They wanted to come here, get a quick couple touchdowns and get the heck out. We were like, 'These guys are not ready to play. We can play with Said freshman fullback Rhino Janes: "The first half I was like, 'Man, I can't believe these guys are rated No. 3 in the But MU didn't score in the first quarter, despite twice cracking Nebraska territory.

Quarterback Jeff Handy, who was sacked three times and harassed continually, was dumped for a 13-yard loss to snuff out one chance. And he threw incomplete on third and 13 on the Tigers' next venture. Kyle Pooler, the leading punter in the Big Eight, then pinned Nebraska at its own 8. And two running plays later, Nebraska was facing third and 4. "We weren't sure we would ever get on track," Nebraska coach Tom Osborne said.

On the first play of the second quarter, though, Phillips ran 12 yards to jump-start what would become a 14-play, 92-yard drive that consumed 4:29. Phillips, wb rushed for 110 yards to register js eighth successive 100-yard ganwf, scored from 5 yards to make it 7-0 with 11:15 to play in the second quarter. MU shackled itself on its next series, first fumbling the center-quarterback exchange on third and 11, then netting just 13 yards on the punt exchange. Pooler's kick went 38 yards, but Reggie Baul returned it 10 yards and the Tigers were penalized 15 yards for a personal foul. That gave Nebraska a first down at the MU 30, and four players later I-back Damon Benning made it 14-0 with a 9-yard run.

Mizzou again penetrated Nebraska territory on its next series, but Handy was smothered for a 3-yard loss on third and 2 at the 'Husker 49. After Freeman's fumble, MU stopped Nebraska on downs on its next series. But the 'Huskers ensuing drive, starting from their own 23, culminated in a touchdown. MU's Kevin Mcintosh, Darryl Major and Damon Simon made stops on successive plays after Nebraska had first and goal at the Mizzou 7, but on fourth and 1 Berringer bootlegged and threw to Mark Gilman. "We didn't get everybody in on that play," said Martin, who wasn't sure whether MU was one or two players shy.

Nebraska added a 30-yard touchdown pass before MU finally scored IWCHTHE, "GAMES ON OUR BIG SCREEN iv I FREE Sadmission with any i sports or CASINO STUB 4 i Mizzou From page one "I'm angered, I'm disappointed and they'd better be angry and disappointed, too, because those last few touchdowns never needed to be scored," Smith said. "We had a whole quarter to play, and anything can happen. They thought the game was over." Ultimately, Nebraska's high-oc-i'ane running game overwhelmed MU, which was outgained 330 yards to 48 on the ground and 482-198 overall. Nebraska quarterback Brook Berringer, apparently fully recovered from a partially collapsed lung, completed nine of 14 passes for 152 yards and three touchdowns. Those numbing figures are ample testimony to Mizzou's fate Saturday.

But the contest was forfeited less in Nebraska's productivity than in MU's squanderings. Nothing glared more than the sequence at the beginning of the second half. Nebraska leading 14-0, Ber- ringer pitched high and wild to I-back Lawrence Phillips on the first option play Nebraska attempted. The ball skittered loose and was recovered by MU's Clayton Baker on the Nebraska "All I could think about was 14-7," "offensive tackle Trey O'Neil said. 'A Said Martin: "It made you feel like, 'Yeah, something's going to go our way It seemed more likely after the next play, on which freshman tailback Brock Olivo slithered 9 yards to give MU second and goal at the 1.

Joe Freeman was inserted for Olivo, though, and fumbled into the end zone after being hit by Nebraska's Barron Miles on the next play. It appeared Freeman may have broken the goal line before fumbling. 3ui he did not speak with reporters after the game. At any rate, the play was ruled Nebraska ball after linebacker Ed Stewart recovered. about up and down: I don't 'think I've ever seen a play change a ballgame that quickly," O'Neil said, Smith said: "For us to win a game this, you've got to take some-'thing like that and turn it into seven points.

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